


Broken Shackles

by ArwingYoshi



Category: Dragon Age (Video Games)
Genre: Blood Magic, Canon-Typical Violence, Companion Jowan, M/M, Minor canon rewrite, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-13
Updated: 2019-01-13
Packaged: 2019-10-09 16:55:59
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,227
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17410685
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ArwingYoshi/pseuds/ArwingYoshi
Summary: When a Blight threatens all of Thedas, Warden Surana must take up the mantle. Fortunately, he has friends to help, including his old friend from the Circle. The events of Dragon Age Origins, with Jowan recruited as a companion after the siege of Redcliffe.





	Broken Shackles

**Author's Note:**

> If you're pro-Templar, pro-Circle, or you like Cullen, then this fic probably isn't for you.

When some Templars dragged Birch Surana out of bed an hour after lights out, he knew what it meant. They told him to keep his mouth shut and to just follow them, and Birch wasn’t exactly in a position to say no, so he did as they asked. Mages who said no to Templars’ orders regretted it.

The Templars escorted him to one of the towers, and a small room inside said tower. He looked around, taking in those surrounding him. Five Templars, including the Knight-Commander and that fellow with the curly hair who the female mages found creepy, and the First Enchanter.

_Wonderful. I’m dragged out of bed in the middle of the night without warning, and locked in a room with those I can’t stand. My night just keeps getting better._

The room itself was nondescript, with no windows, and very little lighting. The only notable feature was a raised basin in the center of the room holding a glowing blue substance. Lyrium.

Greigor approached Surana, his gaze stony. “This is your Harrowing. You will be sent into the Fade, to see if you can resist the temptation of demons. Should you fail, we are here to make sure you never leave this room. If you take too long, we will assume that you have been possessed and cut you down where you stand.”

Birch wanted nothing more than to spit in the Templar’s face and call out everybody in the room for participating in this. But he held his tongue. Irving’s favorite or not, to mouth off to a Templar, especially the Knight-Commander, would get you smacked at best.

“I know you’ll do us proud,” Irving said, smiling at the younger mage. “But remember, you are to tell nobody about what you do tonight.”

“The apprentice has to do the Harrowing alone, First Enchanter,” Greigor growled. Irving nodded and fell silent, nudging Birch forward. The Knight-Commander pointed to the pedestal in the center, and Birch approached it. He looked into the basin, seeing himself reflected in the pool of lyrium.

“We haven’t got all night, robe,” One of the other Templars sneered.

_Oh, you’d like it if I failed, wouldn’t you?_

Birch held his hand out, hovering above the lyrium. He suddenly grew lightheaded and felt as if he were leaving his body. Then everything grew dark.

 

* * *

  
This didn’t look like any dream Birch ever had.

Usually his dreams involved beautiful forests as he imagined them to be, or of the alienage he was taken from. This, though, was an eerie landscape that defied rational thought. It was all dull colors, furniture floating around or imbedded in the ground, strange dark plants, and the ground was made of an unfamiliar substance.

Birch was also aware that he was dreaming.

“So, face this demon and get out. Easy.” Then he realized he had no idea where he was supposed to go. Birch grumbled to himself, “Because why give us even a little hint as to where to go or what to do? Better to just throw us in without any chance to prepare. If we fail, well then clearly we’re a weak mage.”

Take too long, he thought, and it was death for him anyway. So he ventured further into the Fade.

 

* * *

 

“Birch?”

The elf’s eyes fluttered open and he groaned softly. His vision was blurry, seeing only a blob of pale skin topped with dark hair in front of him. When his eyes focused and he saw who it was, a smile graced his lips. It was the first time he’d smiled since he got dragged out of bed last night.

“Hey, Jowan.”

Jowan sighed with relief. “Thank the Maker. I thought you’d never wake up.”

Birch sat up, but he was still groggy and he almost fell out of bed. Jowan put a hand on his arm to steady him. “How long was I out?”

“You were brought back late last night, and slept all morning. When I saw them take you away, I was so afraid you wouldn’t come back.”

“They took me to my Harrowing.” Birch gazed warmly at his friend. “Lucky for both of us, I passed.”

Jowan’s voice lowered, “What happened? What was it like?”

Irving and Greigor’s words flashed through Birch’s mind. Birch wasn’t supposed to reveal anything, and apprentices couldn’t prepare for the trial. Mages were supposed to do it alone.

“They sent me into the Fade and I had to face a demon.”

Jowan’s eyes went wide. “You’re joking.” Birch shook his head. Jowan sat down on the bed next to Birch. “Don’t you think it’s a bit odd, that I haven’t gotten my Harrowing yet?”

“Now that you mention it, that is weird. I mean, you’ve been here longer than I have, and you’re only a couple of years older than me.”

“To tell you the truth,” Jowan looked at Birch, his eyes laced with worry. “I don’t think they plan to give me a Harrowing.”

“Why do you think that?”

“It’s just a feeling I have.”

Birch could see that it was a tender subject for Jowan, and didn’t press him further. Truthfully, now that Jowan had brought it up, Birch now shared that fear. In the past, he never let himself think about it, since quite a few apprentices never came back from their Harrowings, having been taken to the chamber in the dead of night only to never return, with the Templars never speaking of them ever again. Birch had always been afraid of Jowan just vanishing one day and never learning what happened to his friend.

Now though, the idea that the Templars weren’t planning on giving him a Harrowing, and thus never declaring him a fully fledged mage, came with another worry. The main reason apprentices were denied Harrowings was if the Templars were planning to make a mage Tranquil. The idea sent a chill down Birch’s spine.

“Surana?”

Birch looked up when a senior mage addressed him. “The First Enchanter wants to see you.” The older mage didn’t even look at Jowan. Birch spared one more look at Jowan and patted his friend’s forearm before getting up to follow the senior enchanter.

During the walk, Birch overheard a few of the apprentices talking and whispering. Some of them were gossiping about him and how he was a newly Harrowed mage, and Birch caught one of them whispering “Of course Irving’s favorite passed” in a tone that wasn’t exactly warm and pleasant. He also caught a hint of a conversation between two young women, about the young Templar who was at Birch’s Harrowing and how his staring made them uncomfortable.

Being the First Enchanter’s favorite got him some divisive looks. Some thought it was a mark of honor for him, while others resented him for it. Some of the resentment came from the feeling that an elf was unworthy of being the First Enchanter’s favorite. Nobody seemed to notice that Birch himself wasn’t exactly thrilled by Irving’s attention.

Irving had taken an interest in Birch a few years ago, thanks to showing extraordinary magical talent. The First Enchanter had practically made Birch his own apprentice for how much time he doted on him. Birch always wondered if Irving would have even spared him a second glance if he wasn’t so talented, or if he knew what Birch really thought about the Circle.

The only one who cared about his opinions on the matter was Jowan. Jowan never judged him, and he knew full well that Birch hadn’t asked to be Irving’s favorite nor did he welcome it.

The senior mage led Birch to his new quarters, where Irving was waiting, along with a man Birch didn’t recognize. Irving dismissed the mage who had escorted Birch, before turning his attention to the elf.

“I knew you would make us proud. It is my honor to proclaim you a full Circle mage.” Irving reached over to grab a folded up yellow robe with a silver ring on top. “These are your new robes that mark you as such, and a ring signalling that you are a mage of the Circle. Wear them with pride.” Birch took them with a forced smile.

“Thank you, First Enchanter,” Birch said. “Does this mean I can leave the tower now.”

Irving chuckled, as if Birch had told him something funny. “Of course not. This is your home, and you know we can never leave. We have also seen to it that your phylactery has been moved to Denerim, along with the other Harrowed mages.” It was worth a shot. “Allow me to introduce Duncan, of the Gray Wardens.”

“I understand you have completed your Harrowing,” Duncan said to Birch. “Congratulations are in order.”

“Thank you,” Birch’s mouth was suddenly quite dry. A Gray Warden, here in the Tower. The Spirit of Valor back in the Fade had worn Warden Armor, not unlike what Duncan wore. Birch had read stories of the Wardens. He knew that they took in mages, and a Warden mage was free from Chantry law. Finding his voice again, Birch asked, “What brings you here, Warden?”

“I fear a Blight is upon us,” Duncan replied. “So I am here to scout potential recruits.”

“We have many mages who would make good Gray Wardens,” Irving said. “But enough talk of that.” The First Enchanter looked at Birch. “As you know, I’m not going to be around forever, and I’ve been looking for someone to take my place.” Birch’s stomach dropped. Irving continued, “But hopefully that day is quite a ways away. In the meantime, I suggest joining one of the fraternities, since you are eligible. I’d be glad to put in a good word for you with the Aquetarians.”

The Aquetarians. The Fraternity whose message was sound enough, being that magic should be used for good, but unfortunately that message also meant playing nice with the Chantry. Use magic to help others, but do so in a way that won’t step on the Chantry’s toes. Be a good person, but don’t dare demand too much freedom. As if that would convince the Chantry that mages can be trusted.

Birch always found the Libertarian fraternity the more appealing option. They wanted the Circle to break away from the Chantry entirely and allow mages control over their own lives. That was something he could get behind.

But of course he couldn’t say such things aloud. Because that wasn’t what was expected of Irving’s favorite.

“Birch Surana, I would be honored to take you on as my full pupil, so that you may one day become First Enchanter.”

Birch wanted nothing more than to say no, and tell Irving that he could take the position and shove it, find himself another tool. Instead, he just said, “I’ll think about it.”

“I understand. You must be overwhelmed by the idea, but sit on it a while and then return to me tomorrow.” Irving left Birch with Duncan.

“I would have thought any mage would have jumped at that chance,” Duncan said, just making idle conversation.

“I’m not any mage,” Birch replied weakly. “Is there really a Blight coming?”

“I’m afraid so. The senior Wardens and I have seen the signs, and they all point to the awakening of an Archdemon.”

“And you’re going to slay it?”

“That is our goal, yes.”

“Being a Warden sounds like a higher calling. A truly noble purpose.” Not like the Templars, who claimed they fought evil and protected the world, when they were just glorified jailors and to them ‘evil’ meant ‘anyone with magical abilities’. “Is it true that you usually don’t have a lot of mages.”

“I’m afraid so. It’s not by choice, but because the Circle only lets us take one mage at at time whenever we come recruiting, and we don’t stumble across many apostates to conscript. Mages can make some of the best Gray Wardens. In fact, the Grand Enchanter herself used to be a Warden, and I served alongside her many years ago.”

“The Grand Enchanter used to be a Warden? And you knew her?”

“Oh yes. She was sharp as a sword, with a temper to match, and powerful enough to defeat dragons and demons. She always spoke her mind, and didn’t care much for the Circle or the way humans treat elves.”

Birch decided that he liked her already. “So what made her go back to the Circle?”

“Things changed. She was retired from active duty and was given the opportunity to stay on and assist in other ways. Instead, she chose to return, and use her experience as a Warden to help her fellow mages. I hear she’s just as outspoken and fierce now as she was back then, and refuses to bow to anyone.”

The more Birch learned about Fiona, the more he admired her. Before, she was simply the Grand Enchanter, a figure whom he occasionally heard about and knew was their grand leader, but this was the first time he’d come to truly admire her and wish her the best.

Another mage came into the room and called for Duncan. “Well, I should be going,” Duncan bowed his head to Surana. “I wish you luck.”

Birch watched Duncan leave, then down at the Circle robes and ring. The start of a new life, even if it wasn’t the one he wanted.


End file.
